The Lost Princess
by zoe.grant.927
Summary: Annabeth Chase has never known who she is - what she is. Separated from her family eight years old by an evil curse cast by Lord Kronos, the only thing connecting her to her past is a necklace with a secret message. 10 years later, she sets out to find her past with the help of two con-men, and embarks on an adventure that will change the course of her life forever...
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: Hi, everyone! This is my first ever fanfic and I really hope you like it! I'm crazy about the Percy Jackson series and I positively LOVE the 20****th**** Century Fox film 'Anastasia', so I thought it would be a great crossover story. As far as I know, this is the first ever Percy Jackson/Anastasia crossover story on , so, if I don't sound too cheesy, I'm honoured to be the first. Anyway, I hope you like it! So you don't get confused, I've written out a list of who's who below:**

**Anastasia: Portrayed by Annabeth/Anya Chase**

**Dimitri: Portrayed by Percy Jackson**

**Vladimir: Portrayed by Grover Underwood**

**Dowager Empress: Portrayed by Queen Hera**

**Sophie: Portrayed by Juniper**

**Rasputin: Portrayed by Lord Kronos**

**Bartok: Portrayed by Ethan Nakamura**

**Tsar Nicholas: Portrayed by Frederick Chase**

**Czarina Alexandra: Portratyed by Lady Athena**

**Orphanage owner: Portrayed by Dionysus**

**Oh, and before I forget, this first chapter has Hera narrating, so I will write her parts in **_italics_, okay? Enjoy!

Chapter One: Together In Paris

'_There was a time, not very long ago, when we lived in an enchanted world of elegant palaces and grand parties. The year was 1906, and my son-in-law, Frederick, was Tsar of Imperial Athens._

The elderly Dowager Empress Hera sat down on the smallest of the three thrones at the front of the ballroom of the Imperial Palace, watching the festivity unfold in front of her.

_We were celebrating the 300__th__ anniversary of the Chase family's rule. And that night, no star burned brighter than that of our sweet Annabeth, my youngest grandchild. _

Spotting her youngest grandchild, Annabeth, dancing with Tsar Frederick, she waved, smiling. Annabeth was the curious age of eight, fierce, lively and clever. She had curly blonde hair that tumbled down past her shoulders, and her mother Athena's intense grey eyes.

'Grandmamma!' she called out, delighted to see Hera. She ran across the ballroom and made her way up the steps until she reached Hera. She fumbled in her pocket for a moment, then pulled out a drawing of herself, and handed it to her grandmother. Hera smiled, then reached into her own pocket. Annabeth stared, wondering what was inside.

_She begged me not to return to Olympus, so I had a very special gift made for her, to make the separation easier for both of us._

Finally Hera opened her palm, revealing a small, golden box with a lid encrusted with green jewels. There was a keyhole in the back of the box. Also in Hera's hand was a necklace with a pendant that must have been the key.

Annabeth beamed. 'For me? Is it a jewellery-box?'

Hera smiled, holding up the necklace and slotting it into the keyhole. 'Look.'

Annabeth watched, mesmerized, as the lid of the box slowly opened, revealing a tiny statuette of Tsar Frederick and Czarina Athena dancing together, twirling round and round. A tinkly lullaby started playing.

'It plays our lullaby!' she breathed, watching the tiny statuette.

'You can play it when you go to sleep, and pretend it is me singing,' said Hera, taking Annabeth's hand and slowly swaying to the music. She started singing; '_On the wind, across the sea_

_Hear this song and remember,'_

Annabeth joined in, twirling round and grinning.

'_Soon you'll be, home with me,_

_Once upon a December…'_

Hera handed Annabeth the necklace, and pointing to the pendant, said, 'Read what it says.'

Annabeth held the pendant between her finger and thumb, squinting to see the gold words engraved on it that she hadn't noticed before. 'Together… in Olympus…' she said slowly, then realised what the message meant and grinned widely, her grey eyes shining. '_Really_? Oh, Grandmamma!' She hugged Hera, joy filling her.

'_But we would never be together in Olympus. A dark shadow had descended upon the house of the Chase family. His name was… Kronos. We thought he was a holy man, but he was a fraud, power-mad and dangerous.' _

A cloaked figure strode through the ballroom, a young boy with an eye-patch lurking behind him. The guests gasped and parted as he cut through them, terrified. Annabeth whimpered in fear and crawled onto Hera's lap, seeking reassurance. The figure removed the hood of his cloak, and everyone's expression turned either angry or stunned as they realised who it was – Kronos, the man who had betrayed the Chase family and tried to kill them. He had an old, wrinkled face, but his eyes radiated power, glowing gold. In his hand, he carried a small glass cylinder with stone vines that led up to a skull twined around it – a _reliquary_. It was filled with an eerie green mist, swirling around inside.

Tsar Frederick stormed up to Kronos, a murderous look on his face. 'How dare you return to the palace!' he yelled.

Kronos acted offended, placing a hand over his heart dramatically. 'But, I am most loyal to your family!' he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Frederick was fuming. He waved his hand as if swatting an invisible fly. 'Loyal! Ha – you are a traitor! Get out!'

Kronos' expression turned angry. 'You think you can banish the great Lord Kronos! By the unholy powers vested in me, I banish _you_ with a curse! Mark my words, you and your family will die within the fourth night!' He turned and faced the people behind them. 'I WILL NOT REST UNTIL I SEE THE END OF THE CHASE LINE FOREVER!'

Kronos held up the _reliquary_, and the green mist shot out of the stone skull's mouth, zipping upwards and tangling itself around the chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It broke loose from its chain, and fell. The guests screamed and dived out of the way seconds before it hit the floor and smashed. Then, Kronos disappeared.

'_Consumed by his hatred for Frederick and his family, Kronos sold his soul for the power to destroy them. From that moment on, the spark of unhappiness in our country was fanned into a flame that would soon destroy our lives forever.'_

Nights later, the curse had taken its toll on the royal family. Kronos' dark magic had sparked a revolution, and the people developed the same hatred for them as Kronos had. The palace was under attack, and the Chases were hurrying to escape.

Annabeth and Hera were running through the halls with the others, when Annabeth cried out, 'My music-box!' She turned and ran in the other direction.

'Annabeth!' said Hera in protest. 'Come back! Come back!'

Annabeth burst into her room with Hera close behind. She searched frantically for the music-box. Spotting it resting on her dresser, she grabbed it and she and Hera turned for the door, when they heard a gunshot echoing outside. The soldiers were getting closer.

Behind them, a wall opened and a boy Annabeth's age looked out – messy black hair and sea-green eyes. It was Percy, the youngest of the servants in the palace. Seeing the danger Annabeth and her grandmother were in, he scrambled from his hiding place and ran to them.

'Hurry!' he said, shoving them to the opening in the wall. 'Come this way, out the servants' quarters! Hurry!'

In the panic, Annabeth dropped her music-box and it clattered to the floor. She was halfway into the opening, then realised she wasn't holding it. She turned to Percy. 'Wait, my music-box!'

'No time!' said Percy, shaking his head and pushing back towards the opening. 'Go, go!'

Once Annabeth was inside the opening, he closed the wall. There was a pounding on the bedroom doors, and a group of soldiers armed with rifles burst in. 'Where are they?' one of them growled. Percy desperately tried to defend himself and threw a nearby lamp at them, but it did no harm. The soldier hit him on the head with the butt of his rifle, and Percy was knocked out.

Outside the palace, Annabeth and Hera were running towards the train-station, when suddenly Kronos appeared out of nowhere, golden eyes glowing. He held the _reliquary_ in his hand, looking particularly evil.

Hera gasped. 'Kronos!'

'You will never escape me, child!' he yelled, grabbing Annabeth by the ankle.

Annabeth struggled and kicked. 'Let me go! Let me go, please!'

Fortunately for Annabeth, it was heavily snowing that night, and there was a thin layer of ice over the lake they were trying to cross. The ice cracked underneath Kronos' feet, and he lost his grip on Annabeth's ankle and the _reliquary_, sinking into the water.

Annabeth and Hera reached the train-station at last. It was crowded with people, whistles ringing and snow coming down in heavy torrents. They ran over the tracks to reach the train that was about to depart, but Annabeth was growing tired and struggling to keep up with Hera.

'Annabeth, hurry! Hurry!' said Hera, keeping an eye on the train, that was starting to move. They reached the train, and Hera managed to climb on board, but Annabeth's hand slipped out of hers and she stumbled in an effort to keep up with the train.

'Grandmamma!' she panted, trying to grab the railing at the back of the train.

Hera extended her arm, reaching out. 'Take my hand, Annabeth! Take my hand!' Luckily, she managed to get a grip on Annabeth's hand. 'Hold onto my hand! '

'Don't let go!' Annabeth pleaded, as the train built up speed and struggled to keep running. Then, in one fatal moment, she stumbled and fell onto the tracks, banging her head on the hard metal.

'Anastasia!' Hera called out, looking at the limp form of her granddaughter. She couldn't lose that dear little girl. '_Anastasia!'_

The train blasted one final, loud whistle, and steamed off down the track and out of the city, leaving behind the young Annabeth, possibly forever.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi, peoples! Thanks for the reviews – I was really pleased that you all liked the first chapter! I will try to update faster, and luckily tomorrow I'm off school for a whole week, so I will spend most of that time working on this story. Oh, and I forgot to mention this in the previous chapter, but New York is the St. Petersburg of the story, Olympus is Paris, and Greece is Russia. Anyway, here's Chapter Two! **

**P.S., for the singing bits, they will be in **_**italics**_, **okay?**

Chapter Two: Journey To The Past

_(10 years later, 1916, New York City)_

The busy, snowy streets of New York were crowded as usual, everyone going on about their daily business, carts selling goods and whatnot. But off course, there was always something to talk about…

**Townspeople: '**_New York City is gloomy,_

_New York City is bleak,_

_We're all getting frozen from standing here for weeks,_

_Since the revolution, our lives have been so grey,_

_But thank goodness for the gossip that gets us through the day_

_Have you heard?_

_There's a rumour in New York City,_

_Have you heard what they're saying on the streets?_

**Newspaper-seller:**_ Our old tsar did not survive,_

_One daughter may be still alive,_

**Townspeople:**_ The Princess Annabeth,_

**Newspaper-seller: **_But please do not repeat!_

**Townspeople: **_It's our rumour, our legend, our history,_

_Something whispered in an alleyway,_

_Or through a crack,_

_It's a rumour,_

_That's part of our history,_

_They say her royal grandmamma,_

_Will pay a royal sum,_

_To someone who can bring the princess back!_

Grover Underwood hurried through the streets, looking carefully for his fellow con-man and best friend, the infamous Percy Jackson. He walked up the steps, scanning the area. What he _didn't_ notice was Percy was behind him, leaning casually against a pillar. He whistled at Grover to get his attention, but Grover didn't hear.

Percy sighed. _Can't even hear me,_ he thought, shaking his head. He tapped Grover on the shoulder. '_Grover_!'

Grover turned around, surprised. 'Oh, Perce! Didn't see you there.'

They looked around, making sure they were out of earshot, then started muttering about something. Finishing their conversation, they started walking back along the streets.

**Merchant: **_A ruble for this painting!_

_It's from the palace, I swear!_

_Count Yusopov's pyjamas!_

_Comrades, buy the pair!_

_I got this from the palace,_

_It's lined with real fur!_

**Grover & Percy: **_It could be worth a fortune,_

_If it belonged to her!_

They went into an old building, stuffed with old clothes, jars and other items. There was an oval-shaped window at one end of the room, the ledge covered with snow.

'Well, I booked us the theatre for the auditions,' said Grover.

Percy grabbed a battered old suitcase, threw a few things in and turned to face Grover, feeling great. 'Everything's going according to plan – now all we need is the girl! Just think, Grover, no more forging papers, no more stolen goods. We'll have three tickets out of here – one for you, one for me and one for Annabeth!'

'_It's the rumour, the legend, the mystery,_

_It's the Princess Annabeth who will help us fly,_

_You and I, friend,_

_We'll go down in history,_

_We'll find a girl to play the part,_

_Teach her what to say,_

_Dress her up and take her to Olympus,_

_Imagine the reward her dear old grandmamma will pay!_

_Who else could pull it off but you and me?_

_We'll be rich!_

**Grover: **_We'll be rich!_

**Percy: **_We'll be out!_

**Grover: **_We'll be out!_

**Both: **_And New York City will have some more to talk about!_

**Townspeople: **_Have you heard?_

_There's a rumour in New York City,_

_Have you heard?_

_What they're saying on the streets?_

_Have you heard? _

_There's a rumour in New York City,_

_Have you heard?_

_Comrades, what do you suppose?_

_A fascinating history,_

**Percy: **_The biggest con in history!_

**Townspeople: **_The Princess Annabeth!_

_Alive or dead?_

_Who knows? Shh! _

**Annabeth's POV:**

'Bye, guys!' I called to my friends, who were still inside the orphanage, waving at the windows. 'Bye!'

'I got you a job at the fish factory,' the owner, Mr. D, was saying. He was a lazy old drunk, stuck in his job running the orphanage. 'You go straight down the path till you get to the fork in the road. Go left-'

'Bye!' I yelled yet again, enjoying the fact that it was starting to irritate Mr. D. 'Bye, everybody!'

'Are you listening?!' he snapped, wagging a finger at me.

I sighed. Fun over. 'I'm listening, Mr. D.'

Mr. D's eyes turned hard and cold. 'You've been a thorn in my side since you were brought here, acting like some sort of royal queen, instead of the nameless nobody you really are! For the last ten years, I've fed you, I've clothed you-'

'…kept a roof over my head,' I finished in a bored tone.

Mr. D, who was unlocking the front gates, whirled around, looking extra grumpier than usual. 'How is it you don't have a_ clue_ to who you were before you came to us, but you can remember _all that_?!'

I looked down at the necklace around my neck. 'I _do_ have a clue to my past!' I argued. 'Look, right there-'

'Yes, yes, I_ know_,' he interrupted, grabbing the pendant hanging from my necklace. '_Together in Olympus_. So, you want to go to Olympus to find your family, ah?'

I nodded awkwardly, just wanting to _get out of there_.

Mr. D laughed. 'Little Miss Annie-'

'_Anya_,' I corrected, feeling annoyed. Mr. D always gets my name wrong on purpose.

'Whatever. It is time to get your head out of the clouds, girl, and take your place in life. And when life ends in line, be grateful!' And it was then that I was shoved out of gates and into the cold, wintry unknown.

'_Together in Olympus_!' Mr. D laughed, slamming the gates closed and turning back towards the orphanage.

I walked down the snowy path for about ten minutes, and soon I came to the fork in the road. There was a signpost in the middle of it, with two wooden arrows nailed to it. The one on the left read: **FISHING TOWN**, and the one on the right read: **New York City**.

I remembered Mr. D's instructions. '_Go left_, he said,' I said, studying the signs. 'But I know what's to the left – I'll be Anya the orphan forever. But if I go right, maybe I could find…?' I sat down on a rounded rock, confused, and looked up at the grey sky. I looked at the pendant on my necklace. I'd had it ever since I could remember, and I knew the words engraved on it meant something important – something about my past. 'Whoever gave me this necklace must have loved me. This is crazy! _Me_, go to Olympus?' I looked at the grey sky. 'Give me a sign, a message! Anything!'

I closed my eyes for a few moments, even though now was probably the most ridiculous moment to think of sleep. Soon I got lost in my thoughts, but they were interrupted by the sound of feet – no, _hooves_ – moving down the road. When I opened my eyes, I was so startled my heart nearly stopped beating. Right in front of me, staring intently, was a pure black stallion with bright, intelligent eyes.

The stallion started whinnying, and, without warning, took my scarf in his teeth and dragged it away, trotting round in circles.

'Hey, give that back!' I protested, getting up and reaching for my scarf. 'Stop that! Would you please just-' I tripped over myself and fell into the snow, real professionally. Perfect.

I sat up, dusting snow off my coat, when I noticed something – the stallion had stopped. He was standing behind the wooden arrows on the signpost, nudging the one on the right with his nose. _New York City_…

'Oh, great, a horse wants me to New York,' I muttered. It was mad. But then again… was _this_ the sign? I looked at the horse, who was neighing expectantly, then at the road ahead. I took a deep breath. 'Okay… I can take a hint.'

I carefully climbed onto the horse's back, feeling slightly excited, slightly terrified and slightly crazy all at the same time. _Well_, I thought, _This is it. No turning back, Anya. _

The horse started off down the road, and I urged myself not to look back, but forward. I didn't know what was out there, but sometimes, I figured, you've just got to take the risk.

**Anya: **_Heart, don't fail me now,_

_Courage, don't desert me,_

_Don't turn back, now that we're here,_

_People always say, 'life is full of choices',_

_No one ever mentions fear._

_Or how the world can seem so vast,_

_On a journey,_

_To the past…_

_Somewhere down this road,_

_I know someone's waiting,_

_Years of dreams just can't be wrong,_

_Arms will open wide,_

_I'll be safe and wanted,_

_Finally home, where I belong…_

_Well, starting now I'm learning fast,_

_On this journey,_

_To the past…._

_Home, love, family,_

_There was once a time I must've had them, too,_

_Home, love, family,_

_I will never be complete until I find you…_

_One step at a time,_

_One hope, then another,_

_Who knows where this road may go?_

_Back to who I was,_

_On to find my future,_

_Things my heart still needs to know….._

_Yes, let this be a sign,_

_Let this road be mine,_

_Let it lead me to my past…_

_And bring me home,_

_AT LAAAAAAAAAST….!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi, everyone! I'm sorry I took so long updating – I had a REALLY busy week. Anyway, here's Chapter Three! Enjoy!**

Chapter Three: Once Upon A December

**Annabeth's POV:**

'One ticket to Olympus, please.'

The man in the booth glared down at me. 'Where's your travel papers?' he said in a gruff voice.

I paused, confused. '_Travel papers_?'

The man's expression turned angry. 'No travel papers, NO TICKET!' And he slammed the window of the booth shut.

_Great,_ I thought. _Now how will I get to Olympus?_

Behind me, someone made an annoyed 'Hmph!' sound, obviously triggered by the rude man in the booth. I felt a finger tap my shoulder, and I turned around to face an old woman dressed in rags. She quickly looked around, then gestured for me to come closer. 'See_ Percy Jackson_,' she whispered. 'He can help you.'

The name rang in my head – _Percy Jackson_. I looked at the woman. 'Where can I find him?'

'At the old palace,' she replied, then looking around yet again, 'but you didn't hear it from me!'

Understanding the message, I nodded, then set off down the streets, black horse in tow, to find Percy Jackson.

After getting directions from a street-merchant, I finally found the palace. It was right on the edge of the city, away from the noise and fuss. Snow fell gently, making the palace look somewhat warm despite the cold exterior. The gates were padlocked, but I had experienced that sort of thing from trying to escape from the orphanage many times before. Soon I had picked my way into the courtyard, and was standing at the entrance, a set of double-doors, unfortunately boarded up. But while I was trying to get them open, I didn't notice that my horse had disappeared.

_Damn! _I thought, mentally scolding myself for being so careless. _Where has he got to? _I looked around, and started searching, looking around the yard and anywhere else I could think of. 'Blackjack!' I called (I had named him Blackjack due to the colour of his coat). 'Blackjack, where are you?!'

Then I noticed something – around the corner of the building, hidden cleverly out of sight, was a trap door built into the ground. It was about the size of a motorcar, maybe built for shipping furniture without having the problem of squeezing it through the front door. Most of it was coated in thick snow, but it was obvious a certain stallion had discovered it, based on the massive hole in the door.

I walked over to it, then carefully began to lower myself down, hoping I would find my stupid horse.

I lost my grip as soon as my head went under the hole. Surprised, I did the natural thing and screamed as I crashed into a mountain of ornaments and whatnot with a loud _CLANG!_

I sat up, rubbing my head. 'Ow… not the softest landing ever,' I muttered to myself.

I scanned the room around me. Based on my surroundings and the height of the ceiling, I was in the room just below the ballroom, considering the not-so-tidy furniture strewn around the room – in here had probably been used for storage. Thinking for a moment, I decided to let my instincts take over and explore. I got up, and starting walking around. The room didn't have much to offer my curious mind, so I started climbing the staircase leading to the ballroom above. When I got there, I saw that Blackjack, stupid horse he was, had taken a liking to the more grand furniture in here, happily chewing on a lounge-cushion. When he saw me, he dropped it and trotted over, whinnying. 'Silly animal,' I laughed.

I examined the room as before. The place had a certain _feel_ to it, as if… well, I couldn't quite say, but I knew it was special. I walked over to a table laden with ornaments. I picked up a plate, blowing the dust off, and for a split-second an image flashed across it – a little blonde girl, being spun around by a man who must've been her father, a grin on her face.

I put the plate down, startled. I realised I was picking up on little details in the room – the floor tiles, the paintings, the golden chandeliers, everything triggering little nagging thoughts in my head. This was getting weird…

'_Dancing bears, painted wings,_

_Things I almost remember,_

_And a song someone sings,_

_Once upon a December_

_Someone holds me safe and warm,_

_Horses prance through a silver storm,_

_Figures dancing gracefully,_

_Across my memory…_

I watched, amazed, as the paintings on the wall came to life. People dressed in ball gowns and suits came out, twirling until they reached the floor. A few of the girls came over to me – all of them blonde and grey-eyed. Their faces… they seemed familiar, but again, I couldn't remember if I'd ever seen them before, or if they even existed. They smiled and curtseyed, then pulled me into the dancing.

_Someone holds me safe and warm,_

_Horses prance through a silver storm,_

_Figures dancing gracefully,_

_Across my memory,_

_Far away, long ago,_

_Glowing dim as an ember,_

_Things my heart used to know,_

_Things it yearns to remember…_

_And a song someone sings,_

_Once upon a Decemb_er...

**Percy's POV:**

Okay, I'll admit I was confused when I saw a blonde girl around my age dancing around the ballroom, singing at the top of her voice, and then just sit on the floor as if she couldn't remember where she was.

'Hey!' I yelled from the staircase. 'What're you doing here?'

The girl turned around, saw me, and started running away like her life depended on it. I bolted down the staircase in an effort to catch up with her. 'Hey! Hey! Stop!'

The girl seemed to realise it was useless to keep on running, because she stopped in front of a painting on the wall, turning round to face me.

'Okay, now how did you get in h-here….' my voice trailed off when I saw her face. I looked at the painting behind her. It was the one of the royal family, back when they were alive. I studied the young figure of Anastasia in the painting, then back at the girl's face. She looked _exactly _like Anastasia!

An idea formed in my mind. Maybe we'd finally found the girl who we could pass off as the princess. It was about time, anyway – if someone who looked _that much_ like Anastasia couldn't fool the Dowager Empress, then we might as well quit.

The girl looked at me. 'Are you Percy Jackson?'

'That all depends on who's looking for him.'

'My name is Anya and I need travel papers to get to Olympus. They say you're the man to see,' she stepped closer so we were face to face, 'though I can't tell you who said that.'

I walked over to her and circled her slowly for a bit, studying her features. Unfortunately, she wasn't amused.

'Hey, hey!' she said in an annoyed tone. 'Quit circling me - what were you, a _vulture _in another life?!'

'I'm sorry, it's just that you look an awful lot like her, and-' I said, stepping back. 'Well, never mind. Anyway, you said something about _travel papers_?'

'Uh, yes. I'd like to go to Olympus.'

'You'd like to go Olympus?' This was interesting. 'Now, let me ask you something, _Anya_, is there a last name that goes with that?'

Anya rubbed her forehead. 'Well, actually – this is going to sound crazy - I don't know my last name. I was found wandering around when I was eight years old.'

'And, before that, before you were eight-'

'Look, I know it sounds strange, but I don't remember,' she interrupted. 'I have very few memories of my past.'

'Hmm, that's… perfect,' I mumbled to myself sarcastically.

'I do have one clue, however, and that is Olympus,' Anya continued, fiddling with a pendant around her neck. 'So, can you two help me or not?'

I turned to face Grover. 'Grover, the tickets,' I whispered, then turned to face Anya. 'Uh, sure would like to, and in fact, oddly enough we're going to Olympus ourselves.' Grover handed me the tickets quickly. 'And I've got three tickets here,' I continued, waving the tickets in front of Anya's face, 'unfortunately the third one is for her. Anastasia.' I gestured to the painting on the wall.

Grover and I took Anya by each of her arms and steered her up the stairs.

'You see, we are going to reunite the Grand Duchess Anastasia with her grandmother, the Dowager Empress,' Grover explained.

'You do kind of resemble her,' I added.

'The same grey eyes,' said Grover, studying Anya's face.

'The Chase eyes!' I said for effect.

'Frederick's smile,' Grover went on.

'Athena's chin,' I said, cupping Anya's chin in my hand and receiving a glare from her.

'Oh!' Grover gasped, taking her hand, 'She even has the grandmother's hands!'

'She's the same age, the same physical type,' I went on, listing everything.

Suddenly Anya seemed to get it. She laughed slightly. 'Are you trying to tell me that _I_ am Anastasia?'

We stopped in front of yet another portrait. I faced Anya. 'All I'm trying to tell you is that I've seen thousands of girls all over the country and not _one _of them looks as much as the Grand Duchess as you – I mean, look at the portrait!'

Anya poked me in the chest with her finger. 'I knew you were crazy from the beginning, but now I think you are _both_ mad.'

She began to walk away, but I caught up with her. 'Why? You don't know what happened to you!'

'No one knows what happened to her!' Grover added quickly.

'You're looking for family in Olympus,' I continued.

'And her only family is in Olympus!' Grover finished.

I slowed down and walked by her side, trying to be charming – or at least convincing. 'You ever thought of the possibility?'

She stopped and turned to face the painting on the wall. 'That_ I_ could be royalty?'

'Yeah…' Grover and I chorused.

She shook her head. 'Well, I don't know – I mean, it's kind of hard to imagine yourself as royalty when you're sleeping on a wooden floor,' then she smiled just a little bit and stared back at the painting, 'but, sure, I guess every lonely girl would like to think she's a princess.'

'And, somewhere, one girl _is_,' Grover added softly. 'After all, the name Anastasia means, "She will rise again".'

But we needed to get things moving, and Grover was starting to go overboard. 'Really wish we could help, but, the third ticket _is _for Anastasia,' I said casually, starting to walk away, 'Good luck getting to Olympus.'

With that, I strode off down the staircase, leaving the Anya staring at the painting.

Grover caught up with me, looking panicked. 'Why didn't you tell her about our brilliant plan?!'

'Look, all she wants to do is go to Olympus,' I explained. 'Why give away a third of the reward money?'

'I'm telling you, we're walking away too soon!' Grover argued.

'Not to worry – I've got it all under control,' I said.

As we got to the bottom of the staircase, I slowed my pace. 'Okay, walk a little slower,' I told Grover.

There was a silence. I counted down the seconds; 'Three, two, one…'

A voice called out, 'Percy! Percy, wait!' Bingo.

I turned around to face her. 'I'm sorry, did you call me?'

She came to a stop when she reached us. 'Look, if I don't even know who I am then who's to say I'm not a princess or a duchess or whatever she is, right?'

I folded my arms. 'Go on.'

'And if I'm not Anastasia, the Empress will surely know right away and it's all just one honest mistake, right?'

'Sounds about right.'

'But, if you _are_ the princess, then you'll finally know who you are and have your family back!' Grover pointed out.

I tried for a smile. 'You know, he's right! Either way, it gets you to Olympus.'

'Right!' she said, grinning, and shook my hand _hard_.

'Ow!' I complained. Then I announced to no one in particular, 'May I present, her royal highness the Grand Duchess Anastasia!'

She turned to a black horse that I hadn't noticed before and stroked its nose. 'Blackjack, we are going to Olympus!'

I halted. I hadn't said anything about the horse coming along for the ride. 'Actually, the horse stays.'

'What are you talking about – the horse goes,' she said.

'No, the horse does not go.'

'Well, I say he's going.'

'I'm allergic.'

'Not my problem.'

I sighed – she was getting annoying. 'Just leave the horse!'

'I am not leaving the horse!'

Luckily, Grover stepped in. 'Excuse me, but we have a train to catch.'

I looked at Anya. This was going to be a long journey…


End file.
